The Trouble with Finn Hudson
by SciFiMom2000
Summary: Finn finally gets a label to describe his troubles, but is that a good thing or a bad thing?
1. Dropping the Ball

OK, I am writing this because my 10 year old autistic daughter relates to Cory Montieth's character Finn on Glee. She says Finn seems a lot like her, so I am taking that idea and running with it.

I've made a few rewrites to all the chapters. The first is in 3rd person to set up the story and the rest are from Finn's POV. I'm using things my daughter has actually said at home about herself. One thing about Aspberger's I have found out, they can seem on top of the world, but have very low self-esteem.

I do not own Glee or any of its characters, but I do love my daughter,

Mrs. McGuire sat in the back of the classroom, observing Brittany Pierce. It was time to start working on her transition conference for when she left high school. As she took detailed notes of what Brittany did and said, "My cat reads my diary."? She still took note of other students in the class. It was a remedial class so she was in it quite a bit doing observations for conferences. Being the one of the special ed compliance monitors in the building, she got to visit lots of the rooms and just observe.

In this case she was in remedial English and the students were working on comprehension. She noticed that Finn Hudson, the school quarterback, was in the class too, and looking pretty confused. When he would ask questions, it would take him a minute or two to formulate the question with the right words. She could see the frustration on his face. As she kept taking observations on Brittany, she started taking notes on Finn and what he was doing in class.

When the bell rang she went up and had the teacher sign off saying that she had observed Brittany Pierce and then went to her office and placed the observation in Brittany's file. With curiosity she looked up Finn Hudson's cum folder and did a little bit of digging. She noticed that academically he was always low, and common comments made were, "Such a sweet boy, but seems to have trouble making friends. Only has really one friend and is lost if he isn't around. Seems to be eager to learn, but doesn't grasp concepts. Finn is very considerate of others and is very trustworthy." As Mrs. McGuire kept looking at his folder, she saw that he had been sent to interventions, but nothing really seemed to happen with it. "What a shame," Mrs. McGuire said to no one in particular.

The next day there was an Intervention meeting for the week. Mrs. McGuire, as well as Mr. Figgins, Mrs. Pillsbury, Mr. Schue, and several other special education teacher sat down to talk about next weeks plans and students. Mrs. McGuire started, "Brittany Pierce's observation is complete and signed off on. I will be entering it into the system and we can set up her transition conference with her parents to take place by the end of the month. Any questions? Good. Alright, I have some new business. While I was in remedial English observing Miss Pierce, I noticed the Finn Hudson was in the class. I noted that he was having quite a bit of trouble with the class, even though it seemed very clear that he was trying. Out of curiosity, I looked up his cum folder to see if he had any testing done, and I only saw where he had gone through intervention in elementary school, but the ball seemed to have been dropped and I can't find anything else on this boy. I would like to put forward to either start intervention, or use what is being done and see if he should go into testing."

"Mrs. McGuire, Finn Hudson is now in high school. Does testing really seem like a logical thing to do this late in his life?" Mr. Figgins questioned. Testing high school students was expensive and he had a budget to maintain.

"Yes Mr. Figgins. If I bring the reports to the Multi-disciplinary team and they determine he should then yes! This boy has gone through his life probably thinking he is dumb, where he may just have a learning disability. He needs to be looked at, because it can make a change in his life. If he understands what he strengths and weaknesses are and how to work with them, his life after school will be that much better for him. Do any of you here work with Finn Hudson?" Mrs. McGuire asked looking around at the team. Mr. Schue lifted his hand and so did Mrs. Pillsbury. "Finn is in my Spanish class on he's a member of the Glee Club." Mrs. Pillsbury added, "When Finn has problems, he comes to me for advice."

"Well, Mr. Schuester, I am going to send paperwork home with Mr. Hudson asking for permission from his mom to start this process. I think that he has an issue that he has worked his whole life compensating for. If he is the quarterback and in Glee, he obviously has intelligence and leadership qualities. I want to be able to give him more skills so that he can continue and develop them more."

"Just give me the paperwork by the end of the day and I will be happy to give it to Finn to take home."

Later that day, Mr. Schue was handing Finn the big envelope with, "Mrs. Carole Hudson" printed clearly on the outside, and a "Return Immediately" stamped on the front. "What's this Mr. Schue? Am I in trouble?" Finn asked nervously as he took the envelope. "No, no Finn. You know Mrs. McGuire the compliance monitor?" "Yes." "Well, she wants your mom to fill out some paperwork on you. She thinks that somewhere in your education, teachers have dropped the ball on you and she wants to make sure that you live up to your potential and I agree with her 100%." Mr. Schue grinned and the kind hearted boy.

In a week, paperwork was being sent out to the different teachers that currently had, or had had Finn Hudson in class. All of his classes, since they were already remedial had interventions in place and the data showed that Finn was still struggling. So the mulit-disciplinary team sent out their paperwork. Mrs. McGuire had urged them to do both the regular and the autistic paperwork. She just had a hunch about Finn; she saw a lot of her young daughter's personality in Finn.

When the paperwork came back, it was all almost the same, with the wording slightly different, but still saying the same thing, "Finn Hudson works extremely hard in class, but concepts are a huge struggle for him. Even though he is popular, he only has one or two friends that he seems to rely on. He doesn't interact outside of a small group of students. He has trouble expressing his emotions in a constructive manner (if upset he kicks or tossed furniture or will physically fight). Anything with a beat or repetitive pattern seems to be easy for him to understand, hence football, glee and playing the drums. He is very loyal to his friends and follows the rules. He is very trustworthy."

Looking at the data and paperwork, Mrs. McGuire was seriously leaning to a diagnosis, but needed a final decision from the psychologist and he hadn't interviewed Finn yet. It made her very said that this very affable young man did not get the help he needed through his education career. This is why she had gone into high school special education. Students like Finn and Brittany, those that have struggled all their school lives and needed someone to champion them. That is what she wanted for her daughter, so she would do it for others' daughters and sons.

Finn and Rachel were walking down the hall when Finn mentioned, "I have an appointment today with the School Psychologist. He wants to ask me some questions."

"Why Finn? Is something wrong?" Rachel asked as her brow furrowed

"Nah, I don't think so. I think it has to do with the paperwork my mom was sent and that she filled out and sent it back. Mrs. Pillsbury and Mrs. McGuire will be there too, just to observe."

"Do you want me to go with you?" Rachel asked. "Nah, I'll be fine. It's not like it is a test or anything. Thanks Rach," and with a kiss Finn headed off to Mrs. McGuire's office. When he knocked on the door, Finn was asked to come in. Finn had never been in Mrs. McGuire's office before. It was homey. There were plants on the window sills, a comfy love seat with pillows and a quilt and several overstuffed chairs with quilts on them too. In the far corner there was Mrs. McGuire's desk with her laptop and tons of papers sitting on it, and on the walls above various pictures of a smiling little girl. There was corner that help little kids books and toys. Finn saw a Buzz Lightyear sitting in the basket, and he immediately picked it up and started playing with it.

Mr. Miller entered the office looking at Finn and the Buzz Lightyear and smiled. Mrs. McGuire was at her desk and then Mrs. Pillsbury came hurrying in. "Finn, thanks for coming. Mr. Miller is just going to ask you some questions and you need to answer them as honestly as you can. Nothing you say will be held against you. All we need to do is find out more about you and how you see yourself. I am here because two teachers must be present during testing, and Mrs. Pillsbury is here to support for you. Do you like the Buzz Lightyear Finn?" Mrs. McGuire asked. She reminded Finn of a younger version of his mom. _I bet she is an awesome mom too._

Mr. Miller started asking Finn questions, "Who is your best friend? _Rachel Berry_ How many close friends do you have?_ 6 maybe._ Is it hard for you to make friends or meet new people? _Yeah it can be. I get either tongue ties or have word vomit and scare people off._ What is easy for you to do?_ Sing, play drums, be a quarterback. I like things that I can count or has beat to it, does that make sense?_ What is hard for you?_ Seriously, everything. School is so hard. I just don't get everything, and I frustrate teachers because I can't just seem to get it. I think I am the male version of Brittany. It's hard for me to express myself unless I am singing. I always seem to use the wrong words, or what I want to say comes out wrong. I don't remember things very well. I still have trouble with my math facts. I always feel dumb around everyone else. I get angry easy and I have a bad habit of breaking furniture when I do. I'm sorry I did it afterwards, but when I'm angry I just don't care. I'm clumsy. Even though I am good in sports, outside of the football field or basketball court, I fall over all kinds of things, hit my head, and seem to crush things in my hands. Coach Bieste calls me Lurch, and others call me Frankenteen, and I am starting to believe I am a big dumb monster."_

Mr. Miller took more notes and asked some more questions. When he was finished, he noted that Finn had played with the Buzz Lightyear toy during the entire interview. Mrs. McGuire also noted it and that when he stopped playing with it, he seemed more agitated. Finn shook Mr. Miller's hand and left Buzz on the couch as he left to office to go to Glee Club.

The three teachers looked at each other. No one wanting to say anything at first. "If he isn't on the Autism Spectrum, then I don't know of anyone that would be," Mrs. McGuire said, giving her opinion. The other two nodded their agreement. "How long before you come up with his diagnosis Mr. Miller?" Mrs. McGuire asked, looked at her colleague for an answer.

"You should have it by the next M-team meeting next week. Looking at the answers he gave, the observations that have been taken and such, this should be rather easy. It isn't the most clean cut diagnosis, but I think we will have one by then."

A week later, Finn and his mom were sitting in Mrs. McGuire's office, but Rachel had joined them too, at Finn's request. Finn noticed that Buzz was sitting where he had left him and started playing with him. Rachel shoots Finn a look of "Why?" but Finn just shrugged and kept playing with the toy. Mrs. McGuire came into the office and asked them to follow her to her conference room because there were going to be quiet a few people there. As they walked into the adjoining room, Finn noticed that her table wasn't like the conference table in the main office; this was a kitchen table with more quilts and plants, and a huge plate of cookies and some milk and water sitting in pitchers. Finn's mouth started watering, but both his mom and Rachel elbowed him to stop. When he looked up, Finn saw Principal Figgins, Mrs. Pillsbury, Mrs. McGuire, Mr. Miller and his other teachers sitting around the table.

Mrs. McGuire started, "We are here for the initial conference for the special education placement of Finn D. Hudson, an 11th grader at William McKinley High School." As she was doing the initial go through and telling his mom her rights, Mrs. McGuire passed the cookies around and also the milk and water. Finn really liked Mrs. McGuire. He kind of tuned everyone else while he was munching on his cookies. Rachel was taking a nibble here and there, but was listening intently to his conference. Finn's attention was drawn in when he heard Mr. Miller say, "Aspberger's Syndrome as it is an Autism Spectrum Disorder."


	2. What now?

Again, I don't own Glee or their characters, but I do love my daughter.

Chapter 2

I just sat there trying to grasp everything that was going around me. My mom was crying; Rachel was talking to the teachers a mile a minute and all I could think about was the work "autism." I had heard the word before, but generally it was for those people that could do amazing mental things like math and music and stuff, but I was definitely not one of those people.

At the end of the meeting, Mrs. McGuire came up and put her arms around my mom and gave her a hug and whispered something in her ear. She handed my mom her business card and then look at me, "Finn if you have any questions, need someone to talk to or just need to vent, please see Miss Pillsbury or myself. We will do whatever we can to help you." She gave me her business card and in pen she had written her cell phone number. "Even at midnight you can reach me by it if you need to talk. This is a huge shock to you, but it doesn't change who you have been. We have just finally identified what makes you different. This is a good thing Finn, I promise."

My mom gave me a hug and she was ready to leave. She gave Rachel a hug to, and I heard her whisper, "take care of my boy, please," before she left. I just sat at the table looking at the Buzz Lightyear I had been messing with. Rachel put her hand on my shoulder and was talking to me, but I didn't really hear her though. She pulled mys chin so that I was looking at her. "Finn, we will get through this. It is just like Mrs. McGuire said, you haven't changed. You are still the same guy you were before the meeting; you just now know why things are hard for you. This is a good thing, and when I get home, I'm going to start researching everything about Aspberger's Syndrome." Rachel took my hand and led me out of the conference room and office. I wasn't thinking about it, but I was still holding the Buzz Lightyear. Just as we walked out of the office, Azimio and Karofsky came by and threw slushies at us. Normally I would have gone after them and bit the crap out of both of them, but I think I was still in shock, because I just stood there and took it. Letting the cold purple ice just slide down my face.

Mrs. Coleman must have seen it because she came running out and literally ran down both of them. Man, she was fast. She literally had both of them by the collars and was yanking them to the principal's office. I heard her yelling at them about, "bullying… suspension…community service… kicking off of football/hockey." Rachel looked at me with a sad look in her eye and took me to the bathroom to clean me up.

"Finn, why didn't you go after those two like you always do? Why did you just take it?" Rachel asked as she was finishing up cleaning my hair.

"I don't know Rach. Maybe I deserve it? I have a problem and now I'm different. No matter what you or Mrs. McGuire says, I am different than I was before." I jumped up getting upset.

"Don't you get it Rachel, I. AM. A. FREAK!" And I ran down the hall not wanting to see anyone.


	3. Maybe it was a bad dream

Chapter 3

I kept running until I just couldn't run anymore. The word freak kept echoing through my brain. My empty brain, the thought to himself. When I looked up I had run to the coffee shop. I was so thirsty I grabbed a tea and maybe a bite to eat. As I was waiting, Coach Sylvester walked in with an older, little lady and was holding her hand. I wanted to just roll into a ball and not be seen, but when the guy behind the counter yelled, "Finn!" Coach Sylvester looked right at me. I'm dead.

"Hudson, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at Glee practice right now?" Coach Sylvester asked. The lady next to her just smiled at me.

"I've got a lot on my mind and Mr. Schue let me out of practice today. Who is this with you Coach?" Nodding at the little lady.

"This is my older sister, Jeannie. I decided to take her out today for some hot chocolate and cookies."

"With extra whip cream, Sue" Jeannie chimed in. "Of course, with extra whipped cream." Sue said with a smile and softness in her voice that I don't think anyone had ever heard before. "Jeannie has down syndrome. I'm her guardian, but since I am always traveling with the Cheerios, she stays at a nursing home." Sue said with a smile. "She comes and sees me every week." Jeannie said with a smile that showed she loved Coach Sylvester. I didn't think anyone could love Coach Sylvester. She was always so mean.

"Did I see you in Mrs. McGuire's office today Hudson?" By this time they were sitting with me at my table. Coach Sylvester was sitting with me and not hurling insults at me, did aliens body snatch her?

"Yes ma'm. I had a conference today about some testing that was done, and I found out I'm a freak. I have autism. I have Aspberger's Syndrome. I'm a freak. I'm too tall for my own good, and now I am a mental freak. I really am a Lurch or Frankenteen like very one calls me. I think Brittany is probably smarter than I am." Word vomit again. Damn. That caused Coach Sylvester to spit out some of her hot chocolate.

"Hudson, no one and I mean no one is that dumb. I love Brittany, but she is someone who will always need someone to look after her. You, on the other hand are a real leader. And even though I don't like admitting it, you are good. You won't have to rely on others your whole life. You figure things out, or find people to help you. Hudson, you know I don't like any of the teachers at school, but I do like Mrs. McGuire. If she said she was going to help you, she will. I was on the team that hired her. She came here saying she wanted to make a difference in the kids that have special needs and help those that may not have been helped. You are one of those kids Hudson. She will help you beyond belief. My spies have let me know that you are worried about getting into college; she can help you with that. "

:"Yea Finn, having autism doesn't make you different, it makes you special. Just like me having Down Syndrome doesn't make me different, just special. Because God doesn't make mistakes." Jeannie hadn't said anything until then, and wow, it made a lot of sense.

I felt a little better, but knew I needed to leave, "Thanks Coach Sylvester thanks Miss Sylvester. It was nice talking to you," I said while walking out. I looked down at my cell, and saw I had tons of missed calls. When I looked, I saw they were from everyone in Glee. Wow. I definitely wasn't ready to call them, so I just walked home.

When I walked in, my mom gave me a huge hug. "Oh Finn, I was starting to worry. Are you okay honey, with everything that happened today? I need you to talk to me about this. Rachel called saying that you had run out of school. Honey, please talk to me."

I just sat down on the couch and ran my hands through my hair. I had so much going on in my head I didn't even know where to start. The only thing that seemed to stand out was that I was still a freak, and that was what I told my mom. "Oh honey!" and she just started crying, hard, long sobs. It made me feel even worse. I just held a mom and started to cry with her. I know I was just asking like a girl, but everything was all out of whack. After a while my mom settled down and I just decided to go to bed. Maybe this was just a bad dream.


	4. Living on microwaves and can openers

The weekend went too quickly for Finn. Rachel had come over and was telling me about all the famous people that had Aspberger's like Bill Gates. She talked about the different therapies and interventions that could be done. She even found colleges that had special programs for people with Aspberger's. Even though I know she was trying to be helpful, it only put my more into a rut. It made me feel more of a freak. At one point I just wanted her to stop talking, so I started kissing her. That worked, and I knew that was one thing that I was good at. At least I wasn't a total freak.

Monday morning I saw Mrs. McGuire looking around. I was hoping that she wasn't looking for me, but I wasn't so lucky. "Good morning Finn. You will have first period with me for the rest of the year. We are going to work on some things that will help you in and out of the classroom. This is a one-on-one situation since you are new diagnosis. At least once a week you will talk to Mrs. Pillsbury about any problems you are having or emotions you are having about this. Remember, I am available 24/7 too. Only newly diagnosised students get this kind of attention from me." Mrs. McGuire said as she opened the door to her office. I really liked her office. It felt comfortable.

She motioned for me to sit down on the couch and started to pour herself some coffee from the maker in her office. She must have heard me make a noise, because she offered me some too. "I don't think I have to worry about it stunting your growth," she said laughing. I looked at her and myself. I'm 6'3" and weigh 180 there was nothing little about me. She must have read my mind, "Finn, what I said was a country idiom. Coffee doesn't keep someone from growing. You take things as they are said, don't you. Like Amelia Bedeilia from all of those picture books." I nodded my head. I always liked those books when I was little, but I never understood why people thought they were funny.

"Well Finn, lets start off with that then; when you don't understand what someone says or means, you have to ask them. You have a disability whether you like it or not and you have make sure you understand things clearly. If not, it could cause problems you don't want to have. My daughter is the same way. She takes things literally. One time someone told her to light a fire under her because she was running too slowly. The next thing I knew, she was trying to light a fire and stand over it to make her be faster. I had to take all the lighters out of the house and explain what that saying meant." I nodded understanding what she meant. There were times I felt like doing the same thing, but then thought better of it.

Mrs. McGuire continued, "Why don't you write down sayings and things that you hear and you aren't quite sure what they mean. Especially things the kids say. I may not be able to help you with all of them, but we will get them figured out together. We will make an idiom dictionary for you so that you can keep it in a safe place and when you forget something you can look it up, or if there is something new, you can add it. Does that sound good to you?" I shook my head and for the rest of the block, worked with Mrs. McGuire on my dictionary.

I didn't see Rachel until lunch and she looked worried. "Are you okay Finn, I didn't see you this morning." I nodded and smiled, "I'm working with Mrs. McGuire for first block every morning. We actually did something really cool…" and I told Rachel about my new dictionary. She liked that and told me to use her too if I needed to understand something, "I never have and never will judge you Finn, if you have a question," and she kissed me on the head as she left.

The rest of the week went well until Friday morning. I was waiting outside Mrs. McGuire's office when some of the other hockey players came up on me. "Hudson, what the hell are you doing at the door for retards? Oh, let me guess, they finally found a place where you belong beside Glee." I just snapped. There were 5 of them and I didn't care. I threw down my backpack and started swinging. I heard someone yell and heard Puck enter the fight. Eventually someone got an adult because I felt the guys being pulled off me and someone restraining me. When I looked up, my eyesight was a little blurry but I saw Coach Sylvester, Mike, Puck and Santana holding onto the hockey players and heard Mr. Schue's voice telling me to calm down. In the middle was little Mrs. McGuire with absolute anger in her eyes. "Mr. Schue, open up my office and have Finn sit down. These gentlemen can go to see Mr. Figgins for suspension." One of the hockey players starting saying it was my fault when Mrs. McGuire stopped him with a "Bulls***t!" That stopped everyone cold, and stared at her. She walked up to him with what looked all the power in the world was in her hand, and she pointed her finger at him with each word. "...Kids. If anyone starts a fight or bullies another special education student in this high school, I will personally sit in on your expulsion hearing. Do you understand me? I will not seek suspension, but expulsion for continued bullying. Let all your caveman friends know this, because I don't care if they are a Cheerio, jock, nerd or misfit; they pick on a special ed student I will have their head. Is that understood?" She was practically yelling this as they were walking down the hallway.

Mr. Schue looked at me as I poured myself a cup of coffee and made one for Mrs. McGuire. It had quickly become our routine in the morning. "Finn, you need to have your eye looked at. It's turning purple. And what they hell was that all about?" I shook my head at Mr. Schue, "I can see out of it now, so I'm not worried. Why was I fighting? Because those puck heads was making fun of me and called me retarded! I remember my freshman year during basics about taking the "R" word out of the language because it was used in bullying. I never thought I would be called one, but here I am being called that, and I just lost it. I already feel like a freak, and they did that. I guess the anger I'd been hiding just boiled up. Sorry Mr. Schue."

"Finn, I'm sorry. I'm sorry you feel this way and I'm sorry that we have bullies in the school. You aren't a freak though Finn. You're the quarterback of the team, you're the male lead for Glee, and you lead people wherever you go. The only thing is that you have trouble understanding things, but who doesn't? Everyone has those problems; some are just to a higher degree than others. Finn don't you ever forget that you are a great boy that will someday be a great man."

: At the door, Mrs. McGuire said,"I totally agree with Mr. Schue Finn. You are a great kid with tons of potential, and before you even ask, there won't be much of a hockey team this season, since I just got half of them kicked off the team for breach of the athletic code." Mrs. McGuire went to make herself some coffee and saw that I had already done it. She smiled at me that with that warm, mom smile she had for kids. If I didn't have my mom, I would want Mrs. McGuire as a mom. She was that cool and caring. "Finn. Earth to Finn." Mrs. McGuire was waving her hand in front of my face trying to get my attention. "Sorry, what were you saying Ma'm?"

"Tomorrow you are coming to my house for some basic living skills. I talked to your mom this morning and she said that it was okay. She said she doesn't have as much of a chance to teach you things like cooking since she has to work a lot."

"Yeah, my mom says she spends over half her paycheck on food for me," I said patting my stomach. "I can see that Finn, so what do you do when she is working nights?" "She has a dinner either in the refrigerator for me to heat up or something in the crock pot. I can make eggs, grilled cheese, and cold sandwiches. I can also heat microwave meals and soup."

Mrs. McGuire sighed, "Okay Finn, we are going to work on you creating a meal from start to finish, but I think first I will just get you acquainted with the workings of a kitchen beyond the function of a microwave and can opener."

"Can I invite Rachel too? I'm comfortable around Rachel and if she knows what I am learning, she will definitely help me with it outside of the classroom." If Rachel really knew that I couldn't cook she would have been teaching me already giving me a lecture on nutrients and stuff, and I would rather just have her with me. I was still nervous about this whole thing.

"Of course you can. Like I said though tomorrow will be a fun exercise in living basics and you can meet my daughter. She will be learning the same thing along with you."

Later that day, I saw Rachel in Spanish and slipped her a note; _Do you want to come with me to Mrs. McGuire's tomorrow? She is going to start teaching me living basics and I'm getting an intro into the kitchen. She says I can't live on microwave food and can openers all my life. _

Rachel smiled when she read the note and gave me a small nod. Even though it meant "school" on Saturday, I was looking forward to it.


	5. Having Faith

**After the "Rocky Horror Glee Show" a couple of things stood out to me, so I'm going to put my take on it. Also, sorry I haven't had a chance to update, but between competitve swimming classes for my daughter, my son's football, girl scouts and boy scouts and having to deal with new Aspberger's issues, so trips to the doctors, I am just now getting to write this part. Hope you enjoy**

Chapter 5

I was sitting in Principal Figgins' office waiting for Mr. Schue and Mrs. McGuire to come. I stepped in it deep. I was just trying to have more confidence. Isn't that what Sam said in the locker room? Brad was sexy because he was confident, and lets face it, I haven't been very confident lately.

Mr. Schue came in followed by Mrs. McGuire. I'm not sure who looked more pissed, but I was in trouble. Boy, did I let them and my mom down. I always seem to let someone down. I kind of tuned out what they were saying until I heard "one month suspension and summer school" come out of Principal Figgin's mouth. Crap. I'm dead. I'm more then dead. I wanted to yell, "I was just doing what Sam said. I needed to feel confident about being in my underwear, and what's the difference between walking around the halls and being in the auditorium!" I didn't though, and left the room when Mr. Schue asked me to.

That's when I heard yelling, and it was all at Principal Figgins. Mr. Schue was talking about precedent, what was that?, and Mrs. McGuire was talking about a law and special education and 5 days. When both teachers walked out Mrs. McGuire told me to meet her in her office. A few minutes later I was sitting on the couch messing with the Buzz Lightyear that stayed sat in the corner.

"Finn, I would ask you what you were thinking, but I already know, so I'm not going to go into it, but Finn…common sense bud." Mrs. McGuire looked disappointed. "I deal with this all the time with Gracie. There are times I wonder if God left common sense out when he created Aspberger's Syndrome."

"I'm really sorry Mrs. McGuire. I was just trying to…" I lost my voice then. Is this what my life was always going to be like? Taking what people say and doing it, whether it made sense or not. Here I was starting to think that my freakiness was over, but then I do this and turn back into one. I'm so going to get slushied now and for the rest of high school.

"Finn, FINN…FINN! Wake up!" Mrs. McGuire was yelling at me. Guess I was more tuned into my thoughts then hers. "Finn, because I could prove that your breaking of school policy deals with your disability, Principal Figgins has decided that you punishment will be rewriting the school policies in a more "student friendly" language. It was that or Saturday detention for the rest of the year, and I told him that you were already taking courses on Saturdays."

"Mrs. McGuire, I'm really sorry. I didn't think. I was just so nervous. I'm such a screw up!" I just wanted to duck my head and never see anyone again.

"Finn, you made a mistake that you thought through and felt it was logical. I can't fault you for that. It wasn't a sudden decision on your part. You sought advice, got it, thought about it and acted accordingly, which is what I've been working with you on. Sometimes even the best advice steers us wrong." Mrs. McGuire gave me a big hug.

Rachel was waiting for me outside Mrs. McGuire's office. She looked worried. "Finn, what happened? You weren't at practice and then Jacob came in saying that you were in Principal Figgins' office getting expelled. Please tell me everything is okay?" She looked so worried. I leaned over and gave her a kiss on the top of her head. Her hair was so soft.

"Don't worry, I am in trouble, but not as much as I would have been in if Mr. Schue and Mrs. McGuire hadn't intervened. I'm stuck having to rewrite the student policies in "student friendly" language, whatever that means." I was rolling my eyes repeating my punishment.

"Finn, you used "intervened" correctly. I'm so proud of you." Rachel kissed me on the lips for that. I'm going to have to learn some more "Rachel" words.

Later on, Rachel and I were in my living room eating pizza with my mom. I had to come out with why I was in trouble, especially since Mrs. McGuire called her and told her what happened. I don't think my mom knew what to think about what I did. Rach and I decided to watch "Rocky Horror Picture Show" since I didn't know it. I was also glad that Mr. Schue decided to cancel the show. I really didn't want to be in my underwear in front of strangers.

I felt my phone ring in my back pocket and Rach grabbed it for me. My mom blushed when she saw her do that. The ID said in was Mrs. McGuire, why was she calling at nine o'clock on a Friday night? "Hello?" a voice that wasn't Mrs. McGuire's was on the other end. It was a much younger version of her voice, "Finn? Um, hi, it's Gracie McGuire. I was wondering if you and Rachel would like to take me trick or treating on Halloween Brittany is coming, but Mommy wants someone with more responsibility to be with us and she has to stay and pass out candy, so could you please come and take me and you can dress up and get candy too I know you like candy and Brittany and I are being princesses so if you want to dress up to be with us that would be really neat." I think I have found someone that can talk as much as Rach did in one breath.

"Well Gracie, I would like to, but let me check with Rachel since you asked for her to come too." I leaned over and asked Rachel and her eyes just lit up, so I took that as a big yes. "Yes Gracie, Rachel and I will take you and Brittany trick or treating. We will even dress up, but we will have to go and shop for some costumes."

"Oh, that's good, because Mommy said that you were going to be doing your purchasing assessment so you can do it buying a costume tomorrow. Great Finn. Tell Rachel I said Hi and see you in the morning." Gracie clicked the phone off.

The next morning I picked Rach up to go to for my lesson. She kissed me good morning and then put her hand on mine. "Finn, I was thinking last night about everything that happened yesterday. You know how you said you are still a freak and that you don't know how you will ever make good decisions in your life? You know I have faith in you, your mom has faith in you, has faith in you, and Mrs. McGuire has tons of faith in you."

"What do you mean Rach?" I was confused by where she was going with this.

"Think about it Finn. Mrs. McGuire needs someone to watch over Gracie and Brittany on Halloween. She could have done it herself, because she doesn't let just anyone watch Gracie, but she is choosing you to. She has faith that you will do the right thing and keep Gracie safe, but allow her to have fun. Yes, you are a kid at heart and like having fun, but you do know what is right and wrong. Gracie is all Mrs. McGuire has left, so for her to give you her little girl to look after means she has tons of faith in you Finn. You should be extremely honored by that." I hadn't thought about it like that, hell, my mom wouldn't even let me have a fish, but I was going to be taking care of my teacher's kid, and Brittany too. I gave Rach a mind melting kiss for that, and then drove over to Mrs. McGuire's, happy.

I swear I am NEVER going shopping with four women again. Going to the Halloween shop with Brittany, Rachel Mrs. McGuire and Gracie was exhausting. I think I now know how Kurt's dad feels when he shops with Kurt. YIKES! Actually Gracie and Brittany weren't bad, they already had their princess costumes, so they were just buying little things for their costumes. Rachel though, had a whole "ensemble" thing going on for our costumes, which I really wasn't into to. Luckily, Mrs. McGuire was paying for our costumes as our "babysitter's" fees and was testing me on how I keep in my budget she set. I had my calculator up on my phone so I could total my amounts and then figure out if I needed to change things or not to come under $50.

I kept vetoing Rachel's choices. "I'm not wearing tights. I'm not wearing a baby bonnet. I'm not wearing a Bert costume." I think I said, "I'm not…" a million times. That's when Gracie came and saved me, She walked over with a costume in hand and said, "Here, this is what you look like in my dreams Finn." In her hand was a western sheriff's costume. It had the shirt, badge, belt and gun. All I had to do was provide the jeans and shoes. I liked it, I liked it a lot. Rachel agreed and then went and found herself a saloon singer's costume for herself. I couldn't wait to see Rachel in that!

On Halloween, Rachel's dads dropped her off at my house and took pictures of us in our costumes. My mom did too. Rachel's dads were going to stay with my mom and help her pass out candy. They were going to watch some old black and white movies while we were at Mrs. McGuire's. I was glad that they liked each other. It made me feel good.

Mrs. McGuire was having dinner for us, so we wouldn't eat all the candy before she could check it. When we got there, Gracie and Brittany were dressed up in their princess costumes. Brittany was Cinderella, and she really looked like her. She even had her hair up like in the cartoon. Jessie was Belle, and was holding a Chewbacca for her Beast. We ate dinner and then Mrs. McGuire wanted to take pictures of us. I felt awfully handsome in my sheriff's costume, and Rachel looked hot in all the lace and satin of her dress. As we were getting ready, Gracie said, "What! Finn, you're missing a piece to your costume! I'll go get it." She ran upstairs while Mrs. McGuire looked on quizzically, obviously not knowing what was going on. Gracie came down a minute later with a worn, straw cowboy hat. You could tell it had been worn, but taken care of. She handed it to me saying, "All sheriffs need a cowboy hat. This was my daddy's." I looked at Mrs. McGuire and saw tears in her eyes. She nodded that I could wear it, so I put it on my head.

Our pictures were taken, and I took the girls out for the evening of trick or treating, but the hat was a metaphor (right Rach?) that I had to be good and smart enough to take care of Mr. and Mrs. McGuire's little girl. I had to be the good guy that wore the white hat.

**This is for my daughter who has become addicted to the "Rocky Horror Glee Show" soundtrack and "Dammit Janet" and sings it all the time, without the dammit. :-) She went as a Rachel Berry vampire in a plaid skirt, argyle socks, loafers, cardigan and vampire teeth. She was too cute, and her brother was her protector as Darth Vader.**


	6. My Girls

Chapter 6

I was starting to feel normal, or as normal as I think I will ever feel. I had a routine, which I found out really let me be calm. I knew what to expect, so it made things easier. My grades were improving. I discovered my strengths (I understand things that have rhythm and beats) and my weaknesses (I will never remember all of my math facts and will always have to use a calculator). Mrs. McGuire was great about talking to my teachers about this too. Of course, I think that was her job anyway.

On Sundays, Rach would come over and we would plan out our week or assignments, tests and practices. Even though Rachel being organized could get annoying, it really helped me keep up with my work and practices and allowed me to see what I was going to do. I didn't feel as lost as I did before. She even bought me an OSU planner from their bookstore one weekend. We still went to Mrs. McGuire's on Saturdays for more of my "learning to live" course. I could now plan, purchase and make a full meal. I already knew how to do laundry, but I was learning how to iron and sew. I found out even Mrs. McGuire couldn't sew, so Rachel taught me. A lot of times while I was with Mrs. McGuire, Rachel were with her daughter Gracie, singing or watching TV.

After I had helped watch over Gracie and Brittany for Halloween, which was tons of fun and lots of candy, I started thinking of Mrs. McGuire as another mom and Gracie as my little sister. We both had to deal with the same thing. Things were going well. Football and glee were awesome. I thought I could do anything, or I could figure out how to do things.

Thursday night my mom got a call. She sounded worried as she went into the kitchen to talk to whomever. I didn't really bother so I just kept watching Thursday Night Football. Then my mom called me into the kitchen, "Finn, come in here. I need to talk to you."

"Everything okay mom?" "Yes and no dear. That was Kerri, um Mrs. McGuire. Her dad has had a heart attack and she needs to leave for Indianapolis right away. She has asked if we could take care of Gracie for a little bit until she comes back. I told her that was fine. I'm going to go over to her house and spend the night and take Gracie to school. I need you to pick Gracie up tomorrow afternoon. That will be your job while Mrs. McGuire is gone. You will take care of Gracie in the afternoons until I can get home, and both of us know you will do just fine taking care of her. Now I'm going to pack an overnight bag. Just make sure you set your alarm to get up in the morning. Love you honey." She patted my cheek and went to her room.

I was a little stunned. I mean Kurt's dad just had a heart attack, and I was wondering if Gracie's grandpa was going through the same thing. I hope everything was okay. I'd seen pictures of him holding up fish he had caught on a fishing trip and sitting with Gracie in his lap. He seemed cool. I hope he was okay.

The next morning at school I told Rachel what was going on. She immediately went into "Rachel mode" and started talking about sending a card and what kind of flower basket to the hospital. She then talked about how we would entertain Gracie over the weekend. "Finn, don't forget to get Gracie." "Don't worry Rach. Between you and Mrs. McGuire, I'm learning. I set an alert on my phone to remind me to go pick her up at 3:30. Your organization is rubbing off on me, and in a good way." I said giving her nose a kiss as we separated to go to our next classes.

At 3:30 I found myself being a giant in a land of midgets. Being 6'3" in an elementary school made me really feel like a giant. The little kids had to look up at me. Since it was a home game on that night, I was wearing my jersey, so I had lots of kids giving me high fives as I walked down the hall to Gracie's class. I wondered if this is what Peyton Manning felt like going out?

I spotted Gracie at her locker getting her stuff and she was talking to a girl with a thick blond braid. Gracie looked upset, "Why can't I sit with you? I'm coming to the game tonight, and I want to be with my friends." I heard the little blond say in a snotty voice, "Friend? Please. You're a loser. You are just weird. We are in fifth grade and you act like a first grader. You still watch Hannah Montana and play little kids games and toys. Grow up Gracie. No one here likes you, so no one is going to sit with you at the football game."

I saw Gracie's face just crumple. I could tell she was trying to hold in her tears, but she wasn't doing too good of a job. Where was the teacher? Why didn't they hear the girl being mean? Well, Gracie and I were the same, and I wasn't going to let someone treat her like that. So I walked up with a big smile and said, "Hey Gracie, ready to go?" I gave her a huge hug, picking her up off the ground. "Finn! Yea, have you heard from my mom?" And Gracie just grabbed her bag and took my hand as we walked away. I had to look back at the little blond headed girl and saw her mouth drop open in shock. I had to smile a little at that.

That night at the game, Gracie, Rach and my mom were in the stands cheering for me, along with the rest of the Glee Club. I had told Rachel what happened at the elementary school, and how bad I felt for her, because she didn't deserve being made fun of for just being herself. Rachel was looking at me like I needed to take my own advice, and she was right. But that night, Rachel grabbed my away jersey for her to wear, and gave Gracie my old jersey from the year before to wear. So when I looked up in the stands, I saw Gracie and Rachel wearing my number five jersey cheering me on. When we were on defense I looked up and smiled at my girls, (yea, I thought of Gracie as my girl) and saw the little blond from earlier. She looked jealous of Gracie, and I smiled a little. It's nice to know that someone is envious (Rach word) of you.

We had won the game. As I walked out of the locker room Rachel, Gracie and my mom were waiting on me. "Finn! I called Momma and she said congratulations! I told her about wearing your jersey and everything She said Papa was sleeping and that she would still be gone for a few more days Rachel and I are going to have a sleepover at your house and I'm going to help make cinnamon rolls in the morning and then Rachel and I are going to do a spa and do you fart in your sleep?' Okay, seriously, Gracie has to stop hanging out with Rachel. They talk exactly the same, but I don't thing Gracie has any periods in her sentences when she is excited. I looked at my mom for a clue and she just said, "How about we go out for some good burgers and then go home. And yes Finn, Rachel is spending the night in the guest room with Gracie, downstairs." She gave me that warning look that I knew too well. I just looked up at the sky giving her my angel look, which didn't work because Rachel started laughing and my mom punched my arm.

The next day while Rachel ran back to her house to get all the stuff for her and Gracie's "spa day" (don't they need Kurt to do spa stuff?) I thought I would talk to Gracie about what had happened at school. "Hey Gracie, who was the blond girl you were talking to yesterday when I picked you up?" "Oh, Amanda. Yea well…sometimes she acts like she's my friend, but a lot of times she won't let me join her group or play with me. I feel like a loser Finn. No one picks me to be in their groups at school. No one wants to play with me at recess. I either play four squares because you have to take turns or I go play by the oak tree by myself. I don't have any starts by my name for passing my facts test. I'm on the lowest reading group. I really try, but it's just so hard, so I'm always in the little kids books. I don't tell momma what is going on because she gets frustrated. I know she gets frustrated at home when I do things that don't make sense, like puffing baby powder all over the bathroom. I was curious. I've heard her cry at night. Momma will do anything for me, but I keep feeling like I just let her down. I'm tired of being a loser Finn." Hearing Gracie say all that was like hearing my own thoughts. I knew exactly how she felt, and I told her that. "But Finn, you're the quarterback of the football team. Everyone likes you. You're popular."

"No I'm not Gracie. I get slushied and I have guys make fun of my all the time. Now that I have been diagnosed with Asperberger's I feel even more like a freak, and some kids have even picked on me more. I've always stood out because I'm so big. I used to go out with a girl that was really popular, but she wasn't really nice to me and she just wanted to date me because I was on the football team. Then I met Rachel, and she saw me for who I was. And Mr. Schue who did the same. They both showed me I wasn't so freaky. They just liked me for who I was, all the problems and goofiness included. I also have the glee club, who accepts me for me, even after I found out about my problem. I wish I could tell you that this will all go away, because it hasn't for me yet, but I think it will get better. I can't promise anything, but you have Rachel and me at least." I gave her a kiss on her head and a hug.


	7. I'm doing better

Chapter 7

I was finally starting to have an okay time at school. Mrs. McGuire came back after about a week, when her dad finally got to leave the hospital. It was nice though being a big brother for Gracie. Everything seemed to be okay. Glee was doing well, football was coming to an end and my grades were actually improving. I was kinda shocked by it, but Mrs. McGuire wasn't. She said it was to be expected now that I was learning how to learn with my problems.

After school, Rach was sitting on my bed, helping me with some of my math homework. "Do you have your calculator? Are your equations written out?"

"Yes Mom" I said rolling my eyes, but she knew that this was something that I was supposed to do. It bugged me a little. It did make me feel like a little kid, but in some ways I guess it was because I had to learn how to learn again. If that made sense, and it didn't seem to in my head, but at least I knew what I meant.

After awhile, Rach and I started talking about everything that had been going on with me. "You know Rach, I keep wondering what my life would be like if I had been diagnosed with this when I was little, like Gracie. Would I be doing better in school? Would I still play sports or be in glee? It sucks that I always seem to be behind everyone else. You know, it is really hard to take a day to understand things that have happened. It's like last year when we lost Regionals; I was sad that day, but it was the next day when I really understood everything that was going on and had happened. When I was watching Gracie, she was telling me she has the same problems. When she goes on field trips she really doesn't tell her mom about them until the next day, which is just like me and football games. How am I supposed to function in the real world if it takes me a day to understand things? I need to be able to make decisions quickly and I can't. UGH!" I was making myself upset.

"Finn, calm down. You are doing great. I'm sure that is something that Mrs. McGuire will work on and when you go to college it will be something that they can continue with. Finn, you are such a leader, so please don't let things hold you back. Remember, you and I are in this together. You are a great guy and you know so much more than you think. Just keep having faith in yourself. Everything will turn out okay," Rachel was rubbing my back while she talked. I could feel everything start to relax. I had worked myself up, and I was so thankful I had Rachel calm me down. Who knew that Rachel Berry would be calming someone else down, normally it was me calming her down. I smiled thinking about that. "Whatcha smilin' for Finn?" I told her, and she gave me this shocked look, but then crushed her soft lips onto mine, and that was all she wrote for the next few minutes.

The next day was better. I was feeling better. I did my normal Saturday morning routine with Rachel and went to Mrs. McGuire's house. Rachel and I told her about my fears and she promised that we would be working on my processing ability after the morning, Rachel went on a shopping trip with her dads and I had promised my mom to take care of Mrs. Hammonds leaves. Mrs. Hammond was a nice old lady that was in a wheelchair. My mom and I helped her out by taking care of her lawn for her, and since she just lived a couple of blocks away, it wasn't a big deal.

I liked being outdoors and doing yard work. It gave me some quiet time to think, which was great. Even though I was having some problems, life wasn't too bad right now. I wasn't really getting picked on anymore since Mrs. McGuire got half the hockey team kicked off the team and had threatened expulsion on them. They pretty much left me alone in school, and I was too busy with sports, glee, Rachel and my studies to really see them outside of school. Azimio and Karofsky even stopped slushying the glee club.

When I finished I put Mrs. Hammonds rakes back in her garage and started walking home. I was lost in my own thoughts about Rachel and didn't hear the car stop or hear the doors open. The next thing that I remembered was a fist come crashing into my nose and smelling that nasty smell you can get when you think you broke your nose. Since I wasn't expecting it, I fell backward, and then felt more punches and kicks to my sides. I heard, "Homo-retard! This is for getting us in huge trouble. I don't know why anyone wastes their time on you!" My stomach and ribs hurt like hell and I could feel blood on my face and in my mouth, then things started to go black.

I woke up to hearing beeping sounds and not feeling concrete under me anymore. I was in a bright room with a cheerful looking lady talking to me. I couldn't quite hear what she was saying though. It felt like my head was underwater. "It's nice that you decided to join us Mr. John Doe. The doctors and police have been waiting for you to wake up We don't know who you are because you didn't have any ID and it appears your cell phone was smashed."

"Where am I and what's wrong with me?" I managed to croak out in a hoarse whisper.

"Well, yesterday afternoon the police found you lying on a sidewalk in a neighborhood. They thought your were a drunk, but when they walked up on you, you had been beaten, severely. They called for paramedics and brought you here. You have a broken nose, a busted ear drum, 5 broken ribs, a punctured lung, and some internal bleeding from what appears to be kick marks to your abdomen. There are bruised footprints on your torso." She said that last piece with a look of disgust on her face. "I'm going to let the policeman that is here to come in a talk to you. They've been stationed here since you were brought in."

I kept thinking that I got the crap beat out of me and was left on the street to die. Where was my mom and Rach. Why weren't they here?

A guy who looked like he was my age came in, but he had a gun sitting on his hip and a badge on his belt. He introduced himself, "Hi, I'm Detective Cooper. I'm glad to see you're awake. The first thing we need to know though is who are you? You had no identification on you, and no one has called in a missing persons report, so…." He left his statement hanging.

"I'm Finn Hudson. I'm 17. My mom is Carole Hudson." I gave him my mom's number and he left to call her. I hurt so bad, I didn't want to think about what she was going to say when she got to the hospital.

I don't know how long it took my mom and Rachel to get to the hospital, but it seemed to be only a second after the detective left. Both of them were crying, and then Burt and Rachel's dads came in, the came as support, I guess. Mom was hugging me and Rachel had my hands and my ribs were hurting like hell. I think my mom realized I was in pain when I winced trying to avoid screaming from the pain her hugs were causing.

My mom had told me she was worried when I hadn't gotten home after a few hours and how they had gone looking for me. She tried to report me missing, but I hadn't been gone for 24 hours so the police wouldn't take the report. The detective came in to talk to me, and asked for my family to leave.

"Was the guy with the hat your dad? He looked like he would kill whoever did this to you?" The detective asked. I just shook my head and told him that Burt was my mom's boyfriend, but that we were close.

"Okay Finn, do you know who did this to you? Was this a robbery? We didn't find your wallet on you and your cell phone was smashed nearby."

"I didn't take my wallet with me. I was just going to rake leaves for a friend and I hate having my wallet on me when I work outside. Even though I didn't see their faces because the blindsided me, I know who did this to me. They called me a homo-retard. It was two guys that have been bullying me and my friends at McKinley for awhile now. They were making fun of me because I joined glee club and kept calling me gay. Then when I was told I had autism this year, they started calling me retard. They tried beating me up one day at school. It was five against one, but my friends and my teachers jumped in. One of my teachers got them kicked off the hockey team and told them if they kept bullying kids she would get them expelled. Their names are Azimio and Karofsky. Even though I didn't see them, I know there voices, too well."

"So this has been ongoing bullying?" I shook my head at the detective. The nurse came in and took a syringe and shot something into my IV. I could feel the coolness of whatever it was enter my veins and I started to feel drowsy. I guess the detective decided to leave me alone because he patted my arm and said he would come back tomorrow.

When I woke up again, I saw Mrs. McGuire and Gracie standing by my bedside. My mom and Rachel were sitting on the small couch in the room. I could hear Burt and Mr. Schue talking in the hallway. Gracie looked like she'd been crying and was trying not too.

:"Hey girlie. Why the tears? I'm beat up, but I'm fine. Don't cry Gracie. I'll be out of here soon and back to being your "big brother" promise." I tried smiling at her, but she just ran out of the room. I looked at Mrs. McGuire trying to figure out what I had done.

"Finn, Gracie's scared dear. She looks up to you and someone has tried to take your life, and she's wondering if someone could come after you, and you're huge, would they come after her because she is so small. I know that doesn't make sense to you, but in her mind, you two are the same, so if it happens to you, it will happen to her. I'm just so sorry this happened to you Finn. No one deserves this, especially someone as kind and loyal as you. I'm so sorry Finn." Now Mrs. McGuire was crying. She leaned over and gave me a kiss on my forehead. Why was she sorry, she didn't do anything but help me and teach me things. But seeing this woman who was my second mom crying just got to me and I felt tears spring up in my eyes.

"Finn, if I hadn't gotten them kicked off the hockey team, they probably wouldn't have done this to you. I just wanted them to stop bullying you guys. I hate, hate, hate bullies and there is no way to protect you kids from them. I can't protect Gracie from them. I tried protecting you from the, and it got you beaten within an inch of your life." She was sobbing in-between pauses. My mom came up and put her arms around her, trying to comfort her.

"Mrs. McGuire, you have no reason to fault yourself for this. Those two assholes did this to me, not you. Like you said, all you do is try to protect me. Please don't feel guilty. They've left me alone in school. They were probably just waiting for an opportunity outside of school to get me, and they got me. It was just a matter of time before they came after me." That thought had really just occurred to me, it had just been a matter of time before they came for me, and they had time to really get angry.

"They got the jump on me, but I can't have people always protecting me. I have to stand up for myself. I am too much of a nice guy. I need to be a little more badass like Puck. No one messes with him. Even though I'm huge, I'm just a friendly giant. I can be picked on, and I let them get to me. I'm not Rachel, confident in myself. I'm not Puck doing what I want and not care. I'm not Santana or Quinn being mean to people for no reason. I need to be more like them in someway. I need to stand up for myself. I need to show Gracie to stand up for herself, and that she is worth it." I was getting myself worked up. I could feel my muscles tensing and the beeping of the monitors increased. I could feel the tears stinging my eyes. I was worth it. I didn't deserve any of this bullying and getting beat up. I'm slow, so what! I have issues, so what! I'm a good person and I like who I am.

Rachel was rubbing my one hand and my mom the other. Mrs. McGuire just stood their with tears in her eyes, smiling. "Finn, I am so glad that you realize that you are worth it. Maybe having some of those qualities that you said would be helpful, but you can't lose sight of who you are. I still feel that this is in some ways my fault, but I also know there is no way to prevent bullying." She sat on the edge of my bed, looking at my mom and Rachel. "No matter what, as a teacher or a parent, there is no way to truly prevent bullying. It is going to happen. The only thing that can really be done is educate the kids on what it is and reporting and then dealing with those that are reported for bullying. It is going to take a zero tolerance by the kids to stop the bullying. Teachers can't be everywhere, neither can parents. Now there are cell phones, texts, MySpace, facebook, email, you tube and all those other ways you can bully people. Unless is comes down to the kids saying, "NO, we aren't going to allow it, it will always happen." Mrs. McGuire looked right at me and my mom, "Charges are going to be filed, I'm almost sure of it, but you need to go after them in civil court. Have them pay for this financially. They and their parents need to know that this is not okay and that there are more consequences than just being suspended from school. I'm not you, and I can't tell you what to do, but I know if this was Gracie, I'd go after them with all guns blazing" You could see that Mrs. McGuire was dead serious too. She had this look about her that was hard to describe. She leaned over and gave me a kiss on my forehead again (it's weird having your teacher kiss you, but it was a mom type kiss, so I didn't mind) and gave my mom a huge hug. She smiled at Rachel and walked out calling for Gracie. I could her here ask Gracie if she wanted to see me, but I could tell that she didn't. I could understand, but I hope she will come back and see me. I didn't like seeing Gracie upset.

The next day the hospital released me home, but I couldn't go back to school for at least a week, which was fine for me. I didn't really feel like going back to school. Detective Cooper visited me and took more of my statement and told me they arrested Karofsky on Azimio in school. "We kind of made it a big production at lunchtime. Your principal wanted to bring them to the office so we could arrest them. Your teacher, Mrs. McGuire and Mr. Schue were there and had fit. They pretty much told him that they needed to be made a spectacle of, and that lunchtime was the best time. I secretly agreed with them, but I couldn't say it out loud. He finally said okay, so your two teachers took us to the lunchroom. I made sure I had four uniforms with me to arrest them. Walking into that café was like parting the Red Sea. Those kids just split when we entered. I couldn't even say anything because that Mrs. McGuire, she's got a voice on her, yelled at Karofsky and Azimio to stop. They froze too. I thought they would run, but the look she was giving would have froze the devil. Anyway, I made sure to loudly arrest them and tell them their charges. I think a kid had a mic or something because I heard what I was saying on the loudspeaker. Anyway, they are being charged with attempted murder. They left you there to die, Finn, so the DA decided to go for the max. Both are currently sitting in processing." Detective Cooper had a huge grin on his face from that. He and I talked some more. He said when I got better, he wanted to take me on in some one-on-one basketball since I was on the team. Guess he had been on the team when he was in high school.

Later on Rachel and the rest of Glee came to the house to see how I was doing. They even picked up Gracie and she was cuddled up against me. I had Gracie on one side and Rachel on the other while they all told me what happened at school. That's when it occurred to me that I needed take charge and be the leader that everyone told me I was. I needed to put an end to this bullying before someone got more hurt than I had.


	8. Party?

**Thanks for all the reviews, replies, alerts and favorites. It really makes me happy. Like I have said before, I don't own Glee, but I do love my daughter and my now jealous son. **

Thanksgiving was right around the corner. This was usually my favorite time of the year. I think it would have been this year too, except I was still dealing with the healing process from having the crap beat out of me. My ribs were getting better. I could stand a small hug from Rachel, and my ear did heal up. My bruises were almost gone. I was getting homebound schooling from my teachers. I had a class a day, which was fine with me. I missed Glee though. I couldn't have that homebound and I couldn't sing either. It hurt my ribs too much.

Actually I was having homebound and Mrs. McGuire's home. She lived in a one story house, and it hurt to go upstairs, so my mom decided that I could stay at Mrs. McGuire's until my ribs healed and walking stairs wasn't torture. Plus I watched Gracie until her mom got home. I was actually helping Gracie with her homework, (whoddu thunk it) and in a way it was helping me with mine. I guess that is what Rachel meant by learning more from helping others figure it out, then just learning it. (That didn't sound right) Anyway this afternoon Gracie had grabbed a basket full of stuff and started making cards at the kitchen table.

"Whatcha doin' girlie? Besides making a mess." I grinned at her waiting for an answer.

"Momma and I aren't going to Indy for Thanksgiving. Momma said it was too hard to so I'm making invitations for Thanksgiving to give to people I want at the party."

"Party? You mean dinner, right? You don't have a party at Thanksgiving; you have dinner and be as a family."

"Not with our family! We eat, play games, sing, dance, play games, watch football, eat some more and have fun! It's a party, and I want my friends there since we can't go home." Gracie said that with a big frown on her face.

"Why did you say it was too hard for your mom to go home? It sounds like Thanksgiving for you guys is fun."

"It is, but this is the first Thanksgiving without Daddy, and this and Christmas were his favorite holidays. Mommy said there were too many memories of Daddy in Indy and she just didn't want to go back this year. Mama and Papa are getting too old to travel far and Gramma and Grandpa are staying because this is Eva's first Thanksgiving. Mommy's been crying a lot, so I thought I would set up the party. Wanna help? I'm inviting you and your mom and Rachel too!"

I didn't realize that Mrs. McGuire had been crying. It must have been after I went to sleep from my pain pills (they really put me out). Mrs. McGuire has been awesome to me and my mom, so I was definitely up to make this Thanksgiving nice for her. She deserved it. "I'll be happy to help you with this Gracie, now tell me what you want to do."

A few hours later, Gracie and I had completed neat little Thanksgiving cards made from my hand (since it was huge according to Gracie). Gracie and I printed out the information and glued them onto the hand turkeys we made. I felt like a total girl, but it was cool. Puck did stuff like this with his little sister, so it was cool. We had come up with a list for the party; me, my mom, Burt, Kurt, Rachel, her dads, Mr. Schue, Mrs. Pillsberry, and Brittany. I tried talking her out of Mr. Schue, Mrs. Pillsberry and Brittany saying they had families, but Gracie insisted on inviting them.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late…Holy crap, what happened in here!" Mrs. McGuire walked in with take out for dinner but stopped when she saw the kitchen table. "Gracie, please tell me you didn't use glitter or sequins. Please, please tell me you didn't!" She had a look of horror on her face as she looked at us.

"Okay, Momma, I didn't use glitter or sequence."

"Oh no! Gracie, what have I told you about using those things!"

"They are the herpes of the craft world and once they come out, they keep popping up all over the place until you die or move whichever comes first." I starting snickering and I heard Mrs. McGuire groan. I guess Gracie had repeated her verbatim (Rachel word).

"Okay, clean up you two, and Gracie, you and I will have a talk. You should not have pulled Finn into this. We are having chicken, mac 'n cheese, salad and tea." As Gracie and I walked to the bathroom, I heard Mrs. McGuire sigh loudly, then laugh.

After dinner, Gracie cleaned up her mess. I see why Mrs. McGuire called glitter, herpes, they really were impossible to get rid of. I guess Gracie told her what she was doing because I saw her put my handprint invitations in her brief case. That's when I decided to talk to Mrs. McGuire about Thanksgiving.

"Mrs. McGuire, can I talk to you for a minute."

"Sure Finn, whatcha need?"

"Can I help you with Thanksgiving? Gracie told me why you were staying here, and everything you will be missing out on. I'm really sorry you are so sad right now, and I'd like to help you out. I know my mom and I will be here for Thanksgiving. If it wasn't for you moving here, I'd still be struggling with school. I'm really thankful that you came to McKinley, and I'd like to repay you for all your help." I gave her as big of a hug my ribs would let me. "I'm sorry you are so sad too." I didn't think about what I was doing, but I gave her a kiss on the forehead, just like I did with my mom when she was sad. I jumped back realizing what I did was wrong, but Mrs. McGuire just smiled and gave my hand a squeeze. "Thank you Finn. You are a great "son" and I'm glad you are one of my students. If you and your mom want to spend your Thanksgiving with Gracie and me, you are more than welcome."


	9. Lips only

Chapter 9

I was back at school. It was the week of Thanksgiving and I tried talking my mom into letting me stay home for the three day week, but she wanted me to go back anyway. I got back into the swing of my routine, something I had been missing. Rachel and the glee club decided they were going to be my protectors, walking me everywhere, protecting my ribs. They were still a bit sore, but a lot better. Brittany and Artie became a battering ram and clearing the way for me in the hall. She'd push him real fast while he yelled, "CLEAR THE WAY! CLEAR THE WAY!" I wanted to crawl in a hole and disappear, but they were being my friends and taking care of me, so I just smiled at their help.

When I was homebound, Rachel was being like the best girlfriend ever. She came everyday after school while I was homebound and helped me with any homework. She kept me up on school gossip; even though she thought gossiping was wrong. She brought me the sheet music we were learning in glee, "Even though you can't sing right now, it doesn't mean you can't learn the song and the choreography. We will never win Sectionals if you don't," she would say with all seriousness. So I would get a private show when Rachel came over, and hey, when your girlfriend was hot and had the voice of an angel, who was I to complain.

Of course Rachel also helped me with my healing. Who knew that you could make out without holding onto each other? After my private performance and before Gracie would get home, Rachel would play a game with me. She would get on her knees next to me on the couch (get your mind out of the gutter) and then tell me that only our lips could touch. She would lean in and start kissing. I couldn't believe how hot it was just to let your lips and tongues touch and no other part. As soon as we would hear the bus we would jump apart waiting for Gracie to come home. Even though just kissing was hot, I was ready for more contact, so I was definitely going to get better.

Gracie's invitations must have worked. Everyone she invited was coming. Rachel being Rachel, and started delegating (Rach's word) things for everyone to do. Gracie was stepping right in line and helping Rachel come up with lists and calling people. Their list consisted of this: Mrs. McGuire & Gracie, turkeys and stuffing, Rachel, vegan mashed potatoes, salad, cranberries and cookies, Mr. Hummel and Kurt, pies and rolls, my mom and I were bringing sweet potatoes casserole, green bean casserole and spiced cider, Mr. Schue and Mrs. Pillsbury were bringing drinks and chicken and noodle and appetizers. Rachel and Gracie were having a great time coming up decorations and different games to play.

I helped Mrs. McGuire with cleaning up as much as I could. Rachel went with her to get the food for Thanksgiving. When they got back, Rachel, my little vegan Rachel, was carrying two of the largest turkeys I had ever seen. When I looked at their weight, once was 22 pounds the other was around 30. I was going to be eating well on Thanksgiving. Rachel was smiling though. "Mrs. McGuire is going to let me come over and show me how to roast a turkey from beginning to end." Rach had a huge smile on her face.

"But Rach, you're a vegan, you don't eat meat and you won't normally really touch meat, so why are you doing this?"

"Because Finn. I love you. And if I want to be able to fix you a proper Thanksgiving meal when we are married, I need to learn. My dads always take me out for the holiday, so this is the perfect opportunity for me to learn." She said, "When we are married" I think my heart did a somersault when I heard that. I couldn't help but smile. I'd been thinking about one day being married to Rach. It just felt so right, but like everyone said, we were way too young and had our whole lives in front of us, but I couldn't see my life without Rachel in it. Since I had been thinking about it, I had been googling Aspberger's Syndrome to see if it were hereditary. There were so many different opinions; some said that yes it was, others said no there was no genetic link. I just didn't know, but I think if Rachel was the mom of my kids, they would be just fine.

The next morning, my mom and I started making our casseroles we were brining, and I was making my dad's recipe for hot spiced cider. It was a Hudson tradition, so I was looking forward to sharing it this year. Gracie called me when the Macy's Parade was on telling me about what she liked and I could hear Rachel singing to the songs in the background. My mom and I left early to help Mrs. McGuire set up tables and stuff. When we got to her house my mom gave her a huge hug and a, "Happy Thanksgiving Kerri. Are you doing okay?" Mrs. McGuire had kind of a look that said, yes, but I'm still sad. As soon as I walked in Gracie commandeered me (Rach was getting pretty proud of my vocabulary) to help with things. By the time everyone showed up, it looked like a party was going to happen, but the house smelled yummy.

The day was great. Just like Gracie said, it was a fun day. One of the best Thanksgiving I could remember. We ate until we were stuffed, even Kurt, rested or in my case napped, played games, had dessert, watched some football and played more games, ate some more, sang and just had tons of fun. This kept going till about midnight. I kinda made sure that Mrs. McGuire never had a chance to really stop and think because I didn't want her to be sad. When my mom and I were getting ready to leave with Gracie, (she was spending the night so Mrs. McGuire could go early shopping the next day) I leaned over and gave her a kiss on her head and whispered, "I hope you had fun today. I hope you weren't too sad, because you are an awesome teacher and mom."


	10. SQUIRREL!

Chapter 10

After Thanksgiving, I was back into the swing of things. Mr. Schue was out for a bit due to the flu and we had this hot substitute, Ms. Holliday, but she did things differently, which kina left me discombobulated. I've learned that I really like a set routine, and Mr. Schue gave that to me. Don't get me wrong, Ms. Holliday did all kinds of cool things and was fun, but she just wasn't Mr. Schue, of course Mr. Schue would never dance with Rachel in that song from Chicago either. I definitely don't think he could pull off that red fringy outfit like Ms. Holliday did. That's funny. Anyway, things were going okay. Things were starting to wind down for the end of the semester and I was getting organized to start studying. Rachel was helping me by setting up small study sessions so I wouldn't cram. My goal was to get at least a C on all my finals, which for me would be a huge deal.

One thing that kept popping up was the fact that I have the attention span of a scared Chihuahua. Rachel would have to keep me focused on my studying. I guess what put Rach over the edge with my attention span was when we were playing the game Hedbandz at a party. You know, it's that game where you don't know what you are and you ask questions to figure out what you were. I kept forgetting what I would ask so I would ask if I was a squirrel. I guess I did that like ten times in a row and so Puck started making fun of me and acting like I was the dogs off the movie _UP! _In fact Rachel brought it up to both my mom and Mrs. McGuire. So I guess my mom and Mrs. McGuire talked and my mom set me up with an appointment with the doctor, a _kid's doctor._ It was only slightly embarrassing to be sitting in a waiting room that had Disney characters on the walls, some cartoon on the TV and picture books instead of Sports Illustrated. Talk about feeling like a giant. When I got called back by the nurse, she took my weight, height, blood pressure and heart rate. She put the data on some chart, and I guess I was at the 100% mark. I whispered to my mom, "Hey at least I can score 100 on something." That got me a loving smack on the back of my head. Anyway the doc came in and talked to my mom about my diagnosis that was done and the paperwork filled out by my teachers and her. The doc wasn't really talking to me, so I wasn't really listening. I know if Rachel was here, she'd be taking notes, and I had to convince her she didn't have to come. It helped that I bribed Mr. Schue to give her a new solo to learn and practice after school. All I had to do was repaint the choir room.

I guess after a few minutes the doc started talking to me, and I didn't hear him until my mom smacked my head again. "Huh, uhh, sorry, was daydreaming. What did you say?"

"Finn, how long do you think you can pay attention to things before you lose interest?"

"Honestly, probably about 5 minutes, maybe 10 max. The only thing that I can do for hours is playing my video games. It's cool being able to go through all the levels and see the different things going on. You never know what's going to happen next. I've spent a total of 25 hours one time playing a COD marathon session once."

"Well, Mrs. Hudson, from everything that was filled out, I believe your son has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, which is common in children with autism. Finn does well on video games because they are constantly changing and never the same, unlike books or lectures. We are going to try several different medications, but since he is essentially an adult body wise, I am going to put him on a non-stimulant medication to see if this helps. We are going to give it about two weeks to see what happens, come back in and do a re-evaluation. If either of you feel it isn't working or if Finn, you feel "off" while on it, please call into the office immediately. Even if it is after hours, leave a message for the doctor on call. Sometimes it is harder to get the right medication for teens and adults then kids. With kids we deal with over dosages due to weight, with adults in is under dosage or adverse reactions." He handed my mom a business card and a prescription. I put the number in my cell phone just in case. With that we left after making a new appointment and went home.

My mom called Mrs. McGuire and let her know what the doctor said about me, and then I guess Gracie got a hold of the phone because my mom was handing me the phone, "Hey Finn, so you have ADHD too? If you have any questions, you can ask me because I'm kind of an expert on it. I've had it since I was 4, and I have had to have my medication changed a bunch because it causes me to pick at my skin, but if I take the medication that doesn't make me want to pick, then I get really hot all the time. Anyway, you can ask me anything if you want to, okay Finn? Love you, bye" I know Gracie had pauses in her speech, but I was going to guess that her meds were starting to wear off. Anyway, she told me "love you" and the only females that ever told me that were my mom and Rachel, so it was kinda cool to hear a little girl tell me that.

The next day Rach was waiting for me at my locker, her foot tapping. I think I was in trouble. "Hey Rach! How was Glee yesterday? I had an appointment with my mom so I couldn't make it."

"Yes Finn, I know and it was an appointment for you! Why didn't you tell me? I would have gone with you."

"Okay, first, who squealed, and secondly I just wasn't sure what the doc would say, so I just wanted me and my mom to go."

"I can make Kurt squeal with the promise of a giving me a make-over and letting him get rid of 3 of my sweaters, and obviously you can get Mr. Schue to distract me by promising him to paint the choir room?"

"Yea, well… I found out I have ADHD and I'm on medication for it. I just took my first dose today. I'm supposed to keep track of how things are going and try to keep time of how long I can pay attention to things. I have to list what I eat and stuff and how much I sleep so the doctor can make sure I am taking the right meds and to make sure I don't have any adverse reaction to it."

"Do you want me to research…"

'NO Rach! I don't want to sound mean, but I just don't need it. I have this huge booklet on the meds. Anyway, you can help me though by helping me with the journal that I have to keep track of all of this stuff in. Especially the paying attention part. I think you have a better idea of when I start wandering off, then anyone else. You could help me out that way, especially after school." I didn't want to piss Rachel off, but she smiled and nodded, so I think I was in the clear even though I didn't want her coming to the docs with me.

"You know Gracie called me last night offering me her expertise in ADHD since she's had it since she was 4." Rachel just sheepishly grinned because it sounded like her always telling people about her expertise in singing since she had won competitions since she was 3 months old.

"Gracie really loves you Finn. She thinks of you like her big brother since she doesn't have one. She told me that on Thanksgiving. You know she is scared though since you were beaten. She is still afraid of that happening to her. I guess she has been being bullied by some of the kids at school still, and she doesn't know what to do. I keep telling her to tell her mom or teacher, but she isn't comfortable doing it, and she swore me not to tell. She said she wanted to grow up and handle it on her own."

"RACHEL! You of all people know that you should have told someone to help Gracie. You've been bullied and know it isn't going to stop until someone steps in."

"Finn, you were beaten and left for dead because someone stepped in and tried to help you, and I stand up for myself. I hate the bullying, but it doesn't bother me, because they are just jealous of my talent."

"Oh Rachel. I'm going to go tell Mrs. McGuire, and your coming with me. Gracie may not be getting beat up, but she is still being hurt. Gracie isn't strong like you, she is a lot like me and does let what others say or think affect her. Come on!" I grabbed Rachel's hand and practically dragged her to Mrs. McGuire's office. Luckily, Mrs. McGuire was there so I had Rachel repeat everything that Gracie had told her. You could see the blood drain out of Mrs. McGuire's face. After Rachel had finished, Mrs. McGuire just broke down. She cried, and not the lady like sobs you see in movies. This was an all out, face crunching heartbreaking cry. Rachel and I just looked at each other and then we both put our arms around her to comfort her. Mrs. McGuire must have been crying pretty loud because Coach Sylvester was walking by and came in. She came in and looked at the three of us and just quirked her eyebrow. Rachel explained what was going on, and she sent Rachel and me onto class, promising to stay with Mrs. McGuire until she calmed down.

After school, Rachel and I stopped by Mrs. McGuire's office to see how she was doing, but it was locked. "Are you two looking for Kerri?" We both nodded. "She went over to Gracie's school to talk to Gracie and her teachers. I was able to calm her down though. You know, I know I'm a bully, because I get what I want, but I only bully those that can take it, like your curly haired leader. He dishes it back. But bullying you, Hudson, because of something you can't do anything about, or Gracie, because she doesn't act like everyone else, is just wrong. Gracie is such a sweet girl. All she wants are friends. That's all my sister Jeannie wanted, friends. I hated, hated people that made fun or bullied Jeannie, but Jeannie didn't mind. She just ignored them and kept being the nice sweet sister she has always been. Unfortunately it sounds like Gracie is letting it affect who she is, because she wants those friends so bad. I hope Kerri can get this straighten out. I told her I would be happy to make the life of those kids a living hell; it would give the Glee Club a reprieve, but she said no she would deal with it. I just hope everything gets better for her and Gracie." With that Coach Sylvester left us outside the office. You know, I didn't like Coach too much, but she did have soft side and a good heart, for the people she wanted to show them too, and she obviously did for her sister, Gracie and maybe a little for me.

**This chapter is based partially on the fact that many kids with Aspberger's does have ADHD, and the fact that I was the teacher going in and talking to my daughter's teachers due to her being bullied at school. It broke my heart when she had finally broke loose and let me know everything that had been going on and the fact that she was trying to deal with it on her own. Bullying really sucks. Unfortunately it is just something that is never going to go away. **

**Also Finn's "squirrel" response playing HedBandz is what my son does when we play. All he ever yells is, "Am I a squirrel?" Which has now become an ongoing joke in the family.**

**REVIEWS ARE VERY WELCOME!**


	11. Looking over your shoulder

**(A/N since Karofsky is in jail for his assault on Finn, I had to make up an OC to be Kurt's bully) **

Chapter 11

I was still in shock. My mom and Burt were getting married. I guess I really shouldn't have been since they had been dating and they both were really into each other (which were kinda cool, but also creepy since she was my mom). Burt and I got along alright, even though we did have our problems (like that time in Kurt's bedroom), but I think he realized I was just trying to figure things out and forgave me. I think Kurt had too.

Anyway, Kurt went into like warp drive getting the things for the wedding ready. I thought Rach was over the top on things, I think Kurt had her beat by a long shot. He had things timed down to the last second. And I really hope he wasn't going to let 300 doves that had been eating loose in the church. That was just gross and creepy. I have started to notice that Buehler was picking on Kurt a lot, and Kurt really seemed scared by it. I wasn't as bad off as Kurt, but I still flinched at certain noises and had to be aware of what was around me all the time. If I was walking anywhere, I had to have someone with me because the sound of car doors being closed made me jump. Mrs. McGuire had me seeing Mrs. Pillsbury for at least 15 minutes in the morning to talk, and Mrs. Pillsbury had me keeping a journal. Rachel would walk with me everywhere, and the other kids in glee did the same. I was safe though. My tormentors were behind bars, but Kurt's was still here, really working him over.

That's when Rachel came up with an idea of us boys on the football team stand up for Kurt to Buehler. I wasn't sure what to do; Buehler was my right guard and if he didn't like me, I would be on my back most of the football game, but I also know what bullying was like, and mine didn't have me in fear at school, like it did Kurt. Rachel was looking at me with her huge brown eyes, pleading for me to give her an answer, but I just didn't know what to say. "Rach, I want to stand up to Buehler, but I know if I get on his bad side, he could let me get hurt out on the football field. Let me go talk to someone and I'll let you know. I want to do the right thing, but I don't want to get hurt either. I've been hurt enough." I looked at her, pleading that she understood my predicament.

"I'm disappointed that you can't just come out and defend your soon-to-be brother, but I know that you have to process what you need to do, and you are following the life instructions Mrs. McGuire has given you, so I will respect you for that, but don't take to long Finn. Kurt is really scared."

I walked immediately to Ms. Pillsbury's office and lucked out because Mrs. McGuire was there too. I think they were the only ones that would give me some good advice, or at least I hoped they would. I knocked on the door, and was told to come in, "Ms. Pillsbury, Mrs. McGuire, can I ask both of you for some advice on how to deal with a situation?"

Mrs. McGuire responded, "Of course Finn, that is what you are supposed to do when you area having trouble. So what's the problem?"

"Kurt is being bullied by Buehler on the football team. The guy isn't outright hurting him like I had been, but Kurt is terrified to be even near him. The other guys in glee are going to confront Buehler and tell him to leave Kurt alone. I know I need to do that because it is what is right, especially since I know what bullying can lead too, but Buehler is also my right guard and if I piss him off, then I'm going to end up getting hurt on the field because he is going to purposely let guys through the line. My ribs are finally healed and I don't want them to be broken again. I'm just confused. The right thing is to stand up to a bully, show them that you aren't going to take it. But what if you fear the bully will hurt you?"

Mrs. McGuire and Ms. Pillsbury looked at each other and then at me. It was a little creepy because they looked like perfectly timed robots when they did that. Ms. Pillsbury was the first to answer, "Well Finn. You have a dilemma. And I'm glad you are trying to weigh the pros and cons for standing up for Kurt. The best thing is to tell an adult, and since it sounds like Kurt hasn't, Buehler is now on the administration and faculty radar. I understand your fear of being hurt right now after what happened to you earlier. Here is my question Finn, of your two options; standing up and protecting Kurt, or protecting yourself, which one has a more long term ramifications?" I guess I had that lost look that I get because Mrs. McGuire chimed in, "What she means Finn is which option will have more of an effect on the future? Which option is more a short term fix and which is a long term future fix? Okay, sports analogy, Finn, which one will really help win the next game, and which one will help you win the championship at the end of the season?"

I understood that. If I got Buehler pissed at me, then I may have one lousy game, and Coach Bieste would get it fixed, but if I helped Kurt, then Kurt's life would be better, and that was more than one game. Plus, I needed to set an example for Gracie. She was being bullied and if I was going to let someone be bullied, I was just as bad as the bully. I needed to be able to tell Gracie that she could stand up against bullying, because I was able to too. I smiled as I thought about it, and gave my thanks to both ladies. I was going to stand up for Kurt.

That afternoon before practice we all were ready to confront Buehler. Puck had to stay back since he was on probation, but we were ready. Mike and Marty got Buehler's attention by slamming his locker closed on him. We all told him to stay away from Kurt. Beuhler looked at me and snarled, "What, you defending that fairy? Just remember Hudson, I protect you, and if you keep defending him, then you are gonna get it again. I promise you that." He was jabbing his finger into my chest. I lost it; it swung at him and nailed him in the nose. I'd had enough of the bullies and them going after my friends. We went falling over the bench but I just kept landing punches. I kept thinking about Kurt and the terror in his eyes, Rachel dripping in colored ice, Gracie looking so hurt and me feeling powerless. I think all that pent up anger just fueled my punching more, because it took Coach Bieste coming in to pull me off of him. I was screaming by then, "DON'T YOU EVER COME NEAR MY BROTHER OR ANY OF MY FRIENDS AGAIN! IF YOU DO I WILL KILL YOU! I PROMISE. I. WILL. KILL. YOU." By then one of the assistants came in and took hold of Buehler and were escorting him to the nurses, since he had blood all over his face from where I broke his nose and the gash I gave him when we tumbled into the lockers.

Bieste just looked at me like I was crazy, then yelled at everyone to take a knee. "What the hell were you thinking Hudson? You just got healed up enough to come play again and you're going to pick a fight with an offensive linesman! Do you have a death wish?"

"Coach, he wasn't going to hurt me, I had my armour on." And I slowly pulled up my jersey to show the sports "flak jacket" the physical therapist gave me to protect my ribs. I wasn't the smartest person around, but I did have some self preservation. "Buehler keeps bullying Kurt, and Kurt is terrified coach. I know how that feels, because I am too. It's hard when sounds set you off or make you want to run and hide. It's awful feeling like you have to constantly look over your shoulder to see if someone is following you. It makes your life a living hell. I know, I've been living it for the last month. Poor Kurt is living with it too, and I haven't been here to protect him. He's gonna be my brother, and brothers take care of brothers. I don't care if I get suspended, but I'm not going to have us glee kids get picked on anymore."

Artie started talking, "Coach Bieste, Finn is right. Buehler has picked up were Karofsky and Azimio left off, but instead of going after Finn, he picked the smallest of us, Kurt. Kurt has never done anything to him, but he's sneaky and Kurt is now terrified. Have you noticed that Kurt goes straight to the field and is never in the locker room unless it is game time? He's afraid of Buehler. After what happened to Finn, and Kurt finally admitting to us what was going on with Buehler, we decided to take a stand. And I think all of us would do it again," Artie finished with Sam, Mike, Puck and myself nodding our agreement.

"All right guys. Here is what is going to happen. I'm not writing you up Finn, even though I should. I'll explain he got hurt on the field. I also just got an e-mail asking faculty to keep an eye on Buehler and Hummel because of reported harassment and possible bullying. Puckerman! Hudson is going to need a right guard to protect him. I think you can do it for at least one game until I find a suitable replacement. I never liked Buehler anyway. He may have been a good guard, but he just wasn't a nice person. And if I have any more fights in this locker room or on the field, I will right you up and bench you. Is that clear?"

A unified, "YES COACH BIESTE" was yelled.

As we were walking out of the locker room, Kurt was on the field waiting for everyone. Like I said, I wasn't the smartest person around, but I was going to protect my brother, or soon to be brother, from bullies. I only wish I could do that with Gracie. Kurt was waving at us, as all of us walked up to him, telling him what happened in the locker room.

**The next chapter will deal with the wedding, but I need some ideas. I do know that Gracie is going to figure into this chapter. Let me know what you think. **


	12. Shades of Gray AN

**Okay, the next chapter is MATURE and I didn't want to put it with the regular story, "The Trouble with Finn Hudson." If you want to read it, please look for "Finn Hudson's Shades of Gray." Gracie and Mrs. McGuire are still in it. I just thought after watching the Sectional performance and Finn and Rachel breaking up, I would put my take on it and definitely get them back together, because in this world, they just belong to each other. (Yes, I am a hopeless romantic) It is smutty, so not for younger readers or those that don't like it. **

**I'm not sure how to finish off "The Trouble with Finn Hudson" so if you have any suggestions please let me know, because I'm having writers block with it. **

**The next story will be about Finn, Brittany, Rachel and Gracie playing matchmaker for Mrs. McGuire. I was inspired by Kurt and the Furt episode. **

**Reviews are appreciated.**


	13. C's and B's

**This is the last chapter in "The Trouble with Finn Hudson." This chapter is short and sweet. I've enjoyed writing it and already have the ideas going for the next fic. Let me know what you think.**

**Kerri**

**Chapter 13**

The semester was ending, and I had a lot to think about. A lot of things had happened to me since the beginning of the year. I was diagnosed with Aspberger's, met a great teacher and her daughter that have become like a second family, I went trick or treating, got to spend time in the hospital due to having the crap beat out of me by bullies, helped plan an awesome Thanksgiving party, stood up for Kurt, saw my mom get married, lost my girlfriend because I only saw the world in black and white, and gained her back when I realized life was gray.

Christmas and break were almost here. I had taken my finals, and think I did okay. I studied my ass off with Rach's help. I loved her so much. We were still working on our issues, but I can't see my life without her. Rachel still came with me to my Saturday lessons at Mrs. McGuire's. Mrs. McGuire's family was coming to Lima for the holidays, since Mrs. McGuire still wasn't ready to go back to Indy, so we were also helping her get her house ready.

Rachel and I talked the glee club into performing Christmas songs at the elementary school. That was a lot of fun. Gracie's class made us cookies and served us milk and hot chocolate. I sat with Gracie on my lap while we munched on cookies. The kids in her class I think were in awe, because all of us knew Gracie and were talking to her. Even that little blond that had been mean to Gracie was looking a bit jealous. In the kindergarten room a little boy blew chunks on Santana. I didn't laugh, but I sure wanted to. She needed to feel humiliated.

On the last day we were staying in our homerooms for the day, and Mrs. McGuire said I could be in glee since she had things she had to do through the day. In glee we were having a holiday party. Puck was teaching me the driedel game and Rachel was passing out her sugar cookies when Mrs. McGuire came in. She talked to Mr. Schue for a minute before motioning for me to come into Mr. Schue's office. I grabbed Rachel's hand to come with me, because I didn't know what was going on, and I didn't want to be alone.

"Well Finn, in this envelope, I have your grades you received on your finals as well as your final grades for the semester. These are supposed to be sent home, but I figured I would give these to you personally instead of the postman." She handed me a big envelope with the name Carole Hudson-Hummel on the outside, just like the one that started this whole thing. I looked at her and then Rachel and broke the seal. Sliding out the papers I was in shock. I had received B's and C's on all of my final tests; something I had never done. Period. Then I looked at my final grades, and had six C's and a B! This was the best report card I'd had in a long time. I grabbed Rachel and swung her around kissing her. Then I did the same to Mrs. McGuire, but kissing her on the cheek. The whole glee club was staring at us when I burst through the office door and yelled, "ALL C'S AND B'S! FIRST TIME EVER!" I got lots of congratulations; since they all knew how hard school was for me.

At the end of the day, I walked with Rachel to Mrs. McGuire's office. She was in there clearing off her desk. "Hey, Mrs. McGuire, can I talk to you for a minute before you go?"

"Sure Finn. Come on in, Rachel why you don't have seat." I sat down on the loveseat and just instinctually started playing with Buzz again.

I cleared my throat before I started talking, "Remember when I was first diagnosed and I thought I was freak? I've still kept thinking that I was one, a freak. But as things have happened to me, for the good and really, really bad, I've started to realize I'm not a freak. Yea, I'm freakishly tall, and I will never be the brightest light bulb (I used an idiom correctly), but with all the work that you and Rachel have put into me, I think that I am finally a regular kids. One that doesn't have to worry about getting stuck in this town. After I was first diagnosed I wasn't sure if it was a good thing, or a bad thing, but with time, I'm glad I was Mrs. McGuire. I now know I can make it. I'm learning how to be a complete person. I'm actually proud of the fact that I know who I am. As cheesy as this will sound, I am Finn Daniel Hudson, and I have Aspberger's Syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder."

**The End**

"**A child with Aspeberger's Syndrom is trying to understand our social customs in much the same way as an anthropologist who has discovered a new tribe will want to study its people and customs." Tony Attwood **_**The Complete Guide to Aspberger's Syndrome**_


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